Online Hate Crime Hub

Susan Hall: For each month that the Online Hate Crime Hub has been operational, please provide the number of cases investigated, the number sent for prosecution and the number successfully prosecuted, please further brake down by hate crime type and provide a further breakdown of faith hate crime by religion

The Mayor: The Commissioner and I have both made clear that we have a zero-tolerance approach to hate crime, wherever or however it’s perpetrated.
In March 2017, I launched the very first Online Hate Crime Hub in the UK. This was in response to the growing threat that London’s diverse and minority communities are facing - not just on the streets and on public transport, but online. The Hub has dealt with 1,612 cases of online hate crime since its launch in April 2017 until May 2019. In some of those cases the investigation revealed the person responsible resided in another force area meaning the Hub team then liaised with other forces to ensure appropriate takeover. 1,184 cases were London specific. In 53 cases in which the suspect was proceeded against (received a criminal justice outcome which could range from a caution to a prosecution) of those, 33 were offences involving racially or religiously aggravated hate crime. This included seven cases of anti-Semitic hate crime, and five cases of Islamophobic hate crime.
The Hub also provides specialist support and advocacy for victims, works to increase awareness and education on hate crime in schools and communities, and provides funding for grass roots projects and provisions at a local level. It has given met police officers the support they need to investigate online hate crime effectively and support victims to pursue justice.
Police officers who make up our borough community safety units have specialist experience and training in investigating hidden and often high-risk crimes such as hate crime and domestic abuse. Each new Borough Command Unit has a dedicated Hate Crime Liaison Officer who works with communities to support victims of hate crimes as well as supporting complex investigations relating to hate. Having this specialist and accessible knowledge in our frontline policing teams is critical to ensure that communities have the confidence to come forward and report, knowing they will be believed and supported.
We also fund partnership work through the ‘Stop Hate UK’ charity. In the first year of the Hub the project helped to ensure 92 cases of harmful content was removed or user accounts blocked, while 48 per cent of victims accepted access to specialist victim support. The consortium CATCH (Community Alliance to Combat Hate), commissioned by MOPAC also provides advocacy services for hate crime victims. Which includes the specialist knowledge and experience provided by organisations who are in and of the communities they serve. The alliance also works closely together to provide a bespoke joined-up response to complex intersectional cases of hate where more than one personal identity or characteristic is under attack. This partnership working has been extremely successful – 87 per cent of clients reported greater wellbeing, 88 per cent said they felt more informed and empowered, and 67 per cent reported increased feelings of safety as a result of specialist advocacy support.
The monthly data breakdown of the Online Hate Crime Hub can be found in the attached spreadsheet.